Amalgamator



Nrrnn STATES `Paniwr OFFICE.

ERNEST J. VERRUE, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

' AMALGAMATOR.

SPECIFICATION' forming part of Letters Patent No. 625,909, dated May 30, 1899.

1 Application filed August 23, 1897. Serial No. 649,165. (No inodeld To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, ERNEST J.`VERRUE, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Amalgamators; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

This invention relates to a certain new and useful gold-amalgamator designed for use more especially for recovery of what is known v as float-gold or the precious metal from that class of ore commonly known as black sand; and it consists in the arrangement of parts and details of construction, as will be hereinafter fully set forth in the drawings and described and pointed out in the specification.

Owing to the fineness of the float-gold or that contained in black sand it has been found impossible to successfully treat the samein the ordinary belt or table concentrator, for the reason that thewater necessary to run over the concentrator to separate the gold from the sand or base material and convey the sand or material from the concentrator carries therewith so much'of the fine gold as to render such style of machine inexpedient for the treatment of this class' of material.

The object of my invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive apparatus for successfully treating float-gold or recovering the precious metal from black sand, although it is equally as well adapted for the working of any well-pulverized ore.

In order to fully understand the invention, reference must be had to the accompanying sheet of drawings, forming a part of this ap plication, wherein- Figure l is a vertical sectional View in elevation of the amalgamator, taken on line .fr m, Fig. 2; and Fig. 2 s a top plan view of the amalgamator.

In the drawings the letter A isused to indicate any suitable base-frame, to which is secured a series of standards A, upon which standards rests the circular flange or rim a of the amalgamating-pan B. This pan is preferably dish-shaped and is formed with the central upwardly-proj ectin g cone-shaped hub B, which hub is cast with the Worm-thread `at a point near the top of the said pan.

a. The cone-shaped hub B terminates in a stem a2, which fits within a socket b, formed in the lower end of the vertical shaft B2. This shaft is connected at its lower end by crossribs b to the inner wall of the inclined drivehopper B3, which hopper forms a part of conical-shaped inner wall C of the inner shell C. This shell fits within the dish-shaped pan B, and its lwall is outwardly iiared to correspond withthat of the amalgamating-pan. The distance between the outer wall of the inner shell C and the innerwall of the pan B is so regulated as to leave an annular passage-way b2 therebetween, through which the material to be Worked is forced. The upper end of the vertical shaft B2 extends through a bearinghub d of the angle-arms C2, which arms at their lower ends are bolted to the circular flange or rim a, Fig.' l.

By reference to Fig. l ofthe drawings it will be noticed that the outer face of the hopper B3 is provided with the grooved circular ribs 1 2 3. These grooved ribs enable me to dispense with belt-wheels and connections for driving or rotating the said hopper, for the drive-belt 4 is placed around either of the said grooved ribs,in accordance with the speed desired to be attained.

In the wall of the amalgamating-pan is formed the circular groove d and the pockets d2, the former being at approximately the base of the cone-shaped hub B and the latter l The passage-Way b2 is filled with quicksilver to about the point 6, and any quicks'ilver which is splashed or forced upward during the Working of the machine will iiow into one of the pockets d2, and as the pocket is connected with the bottom 4of the passage-Way bythe pipe f the quicksilver will flow back into the passage-Way near the bottom thereof.

The inner shell C is formed ou its outer face with what I term a series of short shelves or ledges h, which are arranged spirally to nearly the upper edge of said shell. These shelves or ledges extend Within the pathway h2 and serve as obstructions to check the material moving upward too freely Within the pathway b2, thus thoroughlysubjecting the same to the action of quicksilver. Said shelves or ledges f also serve to break up or crush any large particles or pieces of ore which may be forced into the passage-way h2 by the worm-hub B'.

In operation the material to be worked is placed within the hopper B3 and is gradually forced downward during the rotary motion of i the same and shell C between the cone-shaped hub B and the conical wall C of the shell into the pathway b2 by lneans of the wormthreads a As the feed of the material into the hopper continues the material is forced upward within the pathway b2 until expelled over the rim d of the amalgamating-pan. During the upward travel of the material through the pathway b2 the precious metal amalgamates with the quicksilver within the f pan B and, being heavier than the base mathe pan.

from within the same and treated in the usual manner to extract the precious metal there- It will be understood that sufficient from. water is introduced within the hopper with the material toproperly wash the same.

That portion which I have termed a drivehopper, which is in effect a hollow coneshaped pulley, is important in that all added drive pulleys or drums are dispensed with and the power is transmitted directly to the hopper, which, owing to its conical form, permits the changing of the speed of the shell. Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure protection in by Letters Patent, is

1. In an amalgamator, the combination with the stationary amalgam-pan, of the central cone-shaped worm-threaded hub upwardly projecting therefrom, the rotatable shell litted within said pan so as to form an annular passage-way which holds an amalgamatingbath, an inclined central wall in said shell which tits over the cone-shaped hub of the pan, a drive-hopper attached tothe central wall of the shell, and a central supportingshaft connected to the wall of the hopper.

2. In an amalgamator,the combina-tion with the stationary dish-shaped amalgam-pan, of the central cone-shaped worm-threaded hub upwardly projecting therefrom, a' series of pockets formed in the said pan near its upper edge, a pipe' connection between said pockets and the bottom of the pan, a rotatable shell provided with an inclined central wall fitted within the amalgampan so as to leave an annular passage-way between the shell and pan and the inclined wall and cone-shaped hub, a series of shelves or ledges projecting from the outer wall of the shell, a drive-hopper at; tached to the inclined inner wall of the shell, and a central supporting-shaft connected to the hopper.

3. In an amalgamator,the combination with the stationary amalgam-pan, of a series of pockets formed therein near its upper edge, a pipe connection between said pockets and the bottom of the pan, a rotatable inner shell fitted within the said pan so as to form an an- 4. In an oretreating apparatus, the combi-- nation with a pan, of a rotatable shell therein and a cone-shaped drive-pulley having a hollow center constituting a hopper for the pan.

5. The combination with an amalgamatingpan having inclined walls and a series of independent pockets formed in the walls pipes without the pan leading downward from the pockets into the pan, and a rotatable shell in the pan, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, Y

in presence of two witnesses, this 13th day of August, 1897.

ERNEST J. VERRUE.

Witnesses:

N. A. ACKER, LEE D. CRAIG. 

